Wired Knight: Lain
by flock-of-crow
Summary: Alone and forgotten, Lain must decide what to do with her newfound Divinity. She decides to rewrite reality... Sequel series, major spoilers, LainAlice, later on crossovers with other anime. Please RR, concrit welcome!
1. Prologue: Light

**Wired Knight: Lain**

By: Raven aka Shadowcat

Prologue: Light 

It happened to her that night, as it happened every night. Alice awoke at 2AM from a dream she could almost remember. Her breath was heavy and when she looked to her husband she was barely able to gasp. The feeble light let in by their window sent pale lines across his face.

The TV turned on. Static. Fleetingly Alice wondered if she was still dreaming. She pushed the lumpy mattress off and floated off the bed. The TV flickered slightly, brief glimpses of other channels. The static returned.

Realizing she couldn't go back to sleep but not wanting to awaken her husband, Alice unplugged the television and left the room. The static remained.

Wandering down the twisting hall, passed her children's rooms, she found herself in the living room with her Navi. Settling down at the computer, she spoke in a hesitant whisper still, not used to the new model, "Hello Navi?"

"Hello Alice," it responded in a hauntingly familiar voice. "You have 1 new email, Alice."

"Read email, please," Alice responded, remembering little bits of her dream.

"Hello Alice, I've missed you." the email began; read aloud by the voice… perhaps it was the voice from her dreams. "Do you remember me?"

Alice blinked, partially from the LCD light and partially from the sender's unfamiliar email address.

"Who are you?" she replied, typing hesitantly. From the other room should could here the static from the television, although she didn't spare it much thought. The moment she sent her email a response returned.

"I didn't think so," it said. "I am Lain. You will remember soon."

Alice couldn't remember ever knowing a Lain. She tried to think about it but the static from the other room was too loud for her to concentrate.

"Lain?" she murmured. She remembered... a bridge? The clock seemed to be ticking very loudly.

It was all very fuzzy- the white noise didn't help. The timer on her coffee machine was beeping loudly. Perhaps it was one of her husband's students? The washing machine started up in the other room, clanking angrily. Maybe it was someone she'd gone to school with? Alice thought she should perhaps turn off the television. Her cell phone began beeping, which she retrieved with a sweaty hand from the table. Hadn't she already turned off the television? The radio flicked on, painting the house with Beethoven. The computer's glow had suddenly become intolerable.

The din of machinery was pierced by the Navi's strange voice, "Don't worry, we'll be together again soon."

* * *

Alice awoke gasping; as she did every night. Her husband's face hovered above her kindly, lined in black and white. "Are you okay?" it asked.

"Yeah I'm fine," Alice lied lamely, gripping her cell phone under the covers.


	2. Prologue: Dark

Prologue: Dark 

It happened to her that night, as it happened every night. Her consciousness congealed in a single spot, pulling itself together from all facets of the Wired. It was a house; it had been her house at one point. Floating atop a cloud of exhaust amongst the cables and panels of the Wired. Absentmindedly (as one often is when they are omniscient) she strolled up the stairs and forced open the door.

"I'm home!" she called, entirely out of habit although there had never been anyone waiting for her, even when she was "normal". Strolling upstairs she found her room, exactly as it had been before things had gone wrong. At a single thought, she rearranged coding into her old bear-pajamas, and felt a little more comfortable from their presence.

Laughing cheerfully she skipped across her room and booted up her old Navi, despite the fact that it was now quite pointless. Still, a visible interface was always helpful in dealings with the World. Running diagnostics, she checked on a few politicians, rewrote a few bank accounts, and sniped a few dozen ebay auctions. She was bored.

The truth of the matter, she realized, was that despite having cosmic power she had no purpose. Humanity had pretended it had a God for so long, it didn't really need one. Sure she could know anything with a mere thought, but in the end it was all useless trivia.

It was then she found herself with Alice again. It always happened. Alice was her last connection with the world so she found herself watching her a lot.

"Ah, so here you are again," a voice cooed from behind her.

"Buzz off," the girl muttered, not looking away from the monitor.

"Oh come on Lain, why do you have to be like that?" the voice asked.

Lain continued watching, but when it became clear the other wouldn't leave she responded coolly, "I have no need for you anymore."

"You have no need for anyone anymore Lain," the voice pouted. "Anyone besides her that is."

"Will you please leave me alone?" Lain asked, anger edging into her voice.

"We've been over this before Lain; it's just not possible," the voice explained. "After all how could I leave, when you thought me here in the first place."

Momentarily losing interest in watching Alice sleep, Lain's eyes fluttered towards the voice. "We both know that isn't true… why would I make you up if I don't want you here?"

"It's because you're lonely," Lain responded, a dark smile on her lips. "I'm all you have."

"Go away! I am Lain, the only Lain, and I don't need some imaginary friend to comfort me!"

"You don't?" the other Lain laughed, leaning forward and pinning Lain to the chair. "No of course not, you're God right? And what good use you've put your powers to- spying on married women!"

"It's not like that," Lain pleaded with herself.

"But we both know it is…"

"Just leave me alone!" Lain began to cry, falling into the Lain's arms.

"We can make it all better… if you let me."

"What are you going to do?" Lain asked. She was terrified that the other her was preparing to act on its own again after all these years but she felt powerless to stop it.

"What you should've done a long time ago," Lain smiled, patting Lain's head reassuringly. "Navi, get me Taro."

"Yes Lain."


End file.
